ist, you need to open up to other styles, forms, and designs, and in looking at some of the early race cars across the Atlantic, I’ve found a lot of new inspiration and design cues that simply work and can blend into American hot rods. There’s a lot more out there than just cool retro hot rod history.
Another European inspiration is the glory days of coach built ‘super cars’ of the art deco time. Your Mulholland Speedster is a classic example of the golden age of coach built vehicles. What brought that along and are there plans in the future for any others?
The Mulholland Roadster, a completely coach built affair from Hollywood Hot Rods, was shown in process and polish during the Grand National Roadster Show in 2015. It should debut in 2017.
gone on to become bigger and better at our craft than I ever planned.
How many build projects are in the works at any given time? And how do you manage it all? We have dozens in various stages, and managing it all can get tricky. We all like to work on the high-end, awesome cars, but there’s a lot of smaller, partial projects in the works, such as chopping a top, channeling a body, and other smaller items. Each one has a deadline, and it’s a balancing act. You have to make sure not to get greedy and have too many things going on or it will fall out of balance.
system where we hid all of the EFI components in the plenum. One of the best late model add-ons for any street rod is an overdrive, 5- or 6-speed trans. Plus, they don’t really blow your cover!
You seem to enjoy combining elements of early European and British race cars. There was a ’32 Brooklands Special roadster, and now you’re knee-deep into a coupe that has blends of Bugatti inspiration. What can you tell us about that styling and the key elements you work into the American Deuce. I like tradition, and respect it. As an art-
I was at an event showing the ’35 Ford Ruby Deluxe coupe and started talking to the owner of (what would be) the Speedster. It developed from there with more conversations about styles, the build, the plan. We eventually got automotive designer Eric Black involved, and it went back and forth about six months on the design concept alone. The car debuted at the 2015 LA Roadster show in polished steel, and it is now in paint and moving. We hope to have it at the 2017 Roadster show. Every single piece on the car is an individual piece of art that must work together as one for the greater good of the car.
You built a 2014 Mustang for Ford to debut at the SEMA show a couple years ago. How did you like the challenge of working with a new car compared to a vintage rod? I like a challenge, and working on some-
Most HHR builds show respect to the history of hot rodding and the past, but what kind of modern touches or technology do you like to bring to your builds? It really depends on the build and the balance of how much new we can add to the old. Every project has a different goal, so it varies. We were one of the first shops to put a Coyote engine in a rod, a ’32 Roadster pickup for Raybestos back in 2010. The important thing was to take advantage of all that modern technology but dress it in vintage trim to hide it. We stripped the 5.0L of all of its plastic and created custom valve covers that looked like old SOHC covers. We also created a custom EFI system with Hilborn and used FAST EFI electronics on it. That’s a great way to go. I even have a 392 Hemi with a Hilborn stack
It takes a vision and true craftsmanship to fabricate a complete fender and running board. Note the tire for stance and guidance. STREETRODLIFE.COM
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